How to Use This Discussion Guide
HOW TO USE THIS DISCUSSION GUIDE
Many Christians wish to develop a deeper trust in God. This discussion guide is designed to be used in conjunction with the book Trusting God. The guide will help you apply the truths of the book to your personal experience and give you a chance to interact with relevant Scripture passages. The guide can be used for individual or group study.
Please notice that the lessons in this discussion guide don’t correspond directly to the chapters in the book. Some of the book chapters are combined in the lessons. We created the discussion guide this way so as to compress the lessons into a shorter amount of time (twelve weeks, if you do one per week) than the book would allow (fourteen chapters).
Preparing the Lesson
Each lesson has four sections.
Central Idea. This section states the main point of the lesson. It will be helpful to keep this in mind while preparing the study, as well as during discussions with a group.
Examining Trust. This section is representative of the chapters in Trusting God. The discussion guide can be used alone, but reading the chapters in Trusting God is strongly encouraged. Members of a group should read this section before meeting.
Developing Trust. These questions should be answered by group members before the group meeting. Some questions are based on Scripture verses; others, on the section “Examining Trust.” The better prepared group members are, the better the discussion will be. Ask the Holy Spirit to bring to mind experiences you have had that you can use to better understand the truths taught in certain questions. Past experiences and lessons learned can be shared without revealing confidential details. If you have no personal experience that relates to a particular question, think about a person you know who has had a relevant experience and try to draw on his or her experience.
Trust in Action. Make a personal commitment to do at least one thing from this section each week. You should read this section early in the week so that you have plenty of time for whatever you decide to do. Be ready to share your experiences with your group.
Leading a Group
Groups vary, and the leader must be sensitive to the needs of his or her group. It is a good idea to dedicate each meeting to the Lord with an opening prayer. The leader can ask for a volunteer to open in prayer or can ask a specific person ahead of time. Having different people open with prayer will give many members this privilege and will lend some variety.
If you have someone who can lead a time of singing, this is a good way to worship together. During this singing time you may want to share Scripture verses that members have been memorizing. The verses can be shared before the singing or between songs in a mood of worship. Members should not feel pressured to memorize Scripture but should have the opportunity to share what they have learned.
Next, move into the material to be covered. If your group has prepared ahead of time, you can go right into the questions. If not, you will want to read the “Examining Trust” section together. Leaders should decide which questions to cover during group time. You probably will not have time to discuss all questions in depth. Focus on the ones that are most important for your group. When a question is about a Scripture passage, it will be helpful to read the passage together. When there are a number of passages, decide which ones to discuss during group time.
Keep your group focused on understanding and applying the truths presented each week. You can minimize controversy by avoiding detailed discussions of conflicting viewpoints. Emphasize what members agree on and accept differences of opinion without contention.
Close your time together with prayer. The leader is responsible to watch the time and to save enough time for prayer. This time is the “heart” of any group and will bind a group together more than anything else. It is better to cut discussion short than to neglect prayer. To avoid spending all your prayer time taking requests, ask members to bring up requests during prayer, explaining important details as they pray. You can talk later about what you have prayed for. Encourage spontaneous prayer. Ask people to pray for one request at a time and to feel free to pray several times. Vary your group prayer time. For instance, you can introduce subjects of prayer with verses from your study and let people pray as they are led.